


Simple Melody

by Alliope



Category: Over the Garden Wall (Cartoon), Soul Eater
Genre: Animal Abuse, Animal Death, Animal Transformation, Divorce, Gen, I promise it's not as bad as it seems I made crona into crowna and snickered for like ten minutes, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Maka has abandonment issues, Nonbinary Character, Nonbinary Crona (Soul Eater), Ragnarok being a general piece of shit, ResBang 2017, Soul's family isn't abusive, Suicide Attempt, and a few 'more than friendship', but it's implied that there are a lot of issues with them and soul, late entry, lots of ridiculous moments of friendship, over the garden wall au, this fic sounds really heavy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2018-01-02
Packaged: 2019-02-26 16:12:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13239369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alliope/pseuds/Alliope
Summary: Lead through the mist by the milk-light of moon, all that was lost is revealedThe forest of The Unknown is a strange, twisted place, where a blankets of branches blot out the sun and the moon grins a sick smile over an impenetrable barrier of leaves. Days are filled with the milling of trapped spirits while the nights are haunted by a ghostly melody and a ringing church. Disconnected from reality, teetering at the borders of Death, it exists in a perpetual autumn as the wanderers become the lost and the lost become the forgotten. The trees have eyes, and nights are long in The Unknown.After hours of running, Soul and Maka have managed to find themselves hopelessly trapped in the woods. Without view of the sky or any sense of direction, their only hope for escape comes in the form of a skittish talking crow and an overly aggressive lantern spirit, who promise to bring them to Medusa, a woman with a way out. But the forest isn't empty A beast hunts in the night with it's strange songs and a demon has taken an interest in stalking Soul. The madness of the woods is getting to them and before anyone can leave the forest, they'll have to escape the hell inside their heads. The music only grows louder.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, Hello! This is my (Late) entry for Resonance Bang 2017!! I had the amazing privilege to work with the immensely skilled Daciafu and bbbutterfingers on tumblr. You can find dacia's art here: http://daciafu.tumblr.com/post/169193065613/simple-melody-an-otgw-au-by-alliope-will-be and butter's art here: http://bbbutterfingers.tumblr.com/post/169194816138/for-simple-melody-by-alliope-happy-resbang !! I couldn't ask for a better team, not just in the amazing work these two can do, but in the amazing people that they are! I had an absolutely incredible first resbang with these two and I managed to come out not only with a product I'm fond of, but a set of friends I adore. And that includes the incredible betas that helped me out with this project, L or genderaesthetic on tumblr, Jaded Envy and Zxanthe. They were all absolutely incredible and save my butt many times while getting this written. I hope you enjoy the fruits of our labor. As a note, because I'm a lat entry, I'm only posting a few chapter so that there's writing to accompany Dacia and Butter's amazing art. This fic will likely get updates in waves of a few chapters as I get them full complete. Anyways, we hope you enjoy!

Maka would’ve never admitted it, but it was a bad idea to charge head first into the woods. Half an hour of running had left her lungs burning and her muscles aching, with cramps that still hurt after multiple rests and two hours of walking. Soul had one in his side; he’d made sure to announce that every few minutes. Even Blair had slowed her enthusiastic trot, dragging her paws as she walked at Maka’s heels. It was impossible to tell how much time had actually passed since they entered the woods; they hadn’t been able to see the sun since they stopped running and the light that did manage to reach the forest floor was dim but unchanging. It would seem ridiculous that they were still in the woods given their sorry state if not for the fact that they were hopelessly lost.

“Have we seen that tree before?” Maka asked, gesturing at a gnarled trunk a few meters ahead of them. It was tall and gray, just like practically every other tree in sight, and in the center sat a large hole. Only half of the other trees had holes. In Maka’s eyes, that was a good enough reason to point it out. Soul followed her gaze and shrugged.

“I don’t think so,” he said. “I don’t recognize those rocks near the base and the trees nearby don’t look like anything we’ve seen.”

Maka frowned and trotted closer, running a hand over the crevice in the bark.

“But doesn’t the hole look familiar?” She squinted at it before glancing back. Soul rolled his eyes.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but most of these trees have holes in them.” He swept his arms in a circle, gesturing at the rest of the forest. Maka stuck her tongue out, but fell back with him and Blair. Perhaps one of the most baffling things about their time spent lost in the woods was that they _weren’t_ walking in circles. At no point had either of them recognized any part of the forest they walked through, and by now Maka had been getting a little desperate for some kind of familiarity.

She heaved a sigh. “Any idea what time it is?”

Soul shook his head, burying his hands in his pockets. He glanced at the forest canopy. Maka sighed again.

“Stop letting out all that air, you’ll deflate,” Soul said, casting a glance at Maka. To spite him, she took a deep breath and groaned as she let the air sigh out. He poked her in the ribcage. “You’ll be concave at this rate.”

Maka swatted him away and shrugged. “Maybe if I lose enough I’ll start popping out the other end, get into the negatives, ya know”

He screwed up his face. “ That’s the worst image you could possibly put in my mind, I can’t believe you made me hear that.” He smirked. “But I guess you’d finally have some tits, then, even if they come out the wrong side.”

Maka frowned, “accidentally” stepping on Soul’s foot. He yelped, yanking his leg away and glaring at her. She looked back at him innocently until he rolled his eyes and fell back beside her. That was the cycle.

Blair began to cry, pawing at the bottom of Soul’s pants. She wanted to be carried, but no one had the energy to haul her around. Soul shook his leg, trying to brush away the noisy animal. She unsheathed her claws, catching and holding the fabric. She yowled.

Soul looked over at Maka, a desperate look in his eyes. She groaned, unbuttoning the top few buttons of her trenchcoat and kneeling down. “Blair, come here!”

The cat perked up and released Soul’s pants. She chirped as she padded over to Maka and jumped into her outstretched arms. Once she had situated herself, Maka re-buttoned the jacket, swaddling Blair close to her chest. She stood back up and slid an arm underneath the cat, before resuming her walking.

“You shouldn’t be so much of a softie with her, she’ll only get worse,” Maka said, glancing at Soul, who was rubbing at his ankle. Blair’s claws must have caught his skin. Soul frowned and smoothed his pant leg back into place.

“I’m not a softie, I just don’t like it when she starts yowling,” Soul muttered, rubbing the back of his neck.

Maka chuckled. “Yeah, whatever you say, cool guy.”

“You’re the one holding her,” Soul said, shooting a glare at the purring mass inside Maka’s jacket. Blair yawned and kneaded at her stomach.

“I already had Blair whining, I didn’t need you to start too.” She readjusted the cat lying against her stomach. “Besides, it’s impossible for you to get worse.”

Soul flicked her on the shoulder and she stuck her tongue out at him. He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Too bad you’re stuck with me, huh?”

She smiled. “Yup.”

The walk went quiet again. They had fallen into that pattern a while ago, bantering for a few moments, before going silent until Maka found the next thing to insist was familiar, rinse and repeat. It kept the forest from growing too quiet and too empty.

It hadn’t been noticeable at first, but the forest was getting steadily darker. The dull amber glow that had hung over the trees was fading to a bluish haze. It was starting to make it difficult to see; the mist in the distance was no longer pierced by the dying light, letting the trees fade into shadows around the group. There was no breeze, but the air was cooling, sending a chill down Maka’s back. She pulled her trench coat tighter around her.

The woods had felt a little creepy when they’d first gotten lost. From their inability to backtrack to the thick tangle of branches keeping out the sun, there was always something unsettling about the place. But at least it seemed safe. The golden light had kept the woods lit and visible— they knew there was nothing following them, they knew there was nothing ahead of them. Being lost in the forest was eerie, but it was eerie in a non-threatening way. The woods under the darkness was an entirely different story.

The night was closing in around them and for the first time, it was starting to sink in that they would have to find a camp, or face walking through the woods without the comfort of sunlight. Neither seemed very pleasant in Maka’s opinion. God, she wished she could see better.

The forest was relatively quiet without any wind flowing through the tree branches. The only notable noise was the crunching of leaves under their feet. Maka strained her ears, trying to listen for any little noise beyond them, crickets, cicadas, anything to fill the silence and indicate some sort of life in the woods.

Her eyes narrowed. The noise was barely audible, so quiet in fact that Maka couldn’t be sure she’d even heard it in the first place. Somewhere deep in the woods she heard a soft jingling sound, like the shaking of a chain. She stopped walking and scrunched up her face to block out any other noises. It was so faint, but she was sure she could hear _something_.

Her focus was broken with a snap as Soul aimed a kick at a nearby bush. She opened her eyes to send a scathing glare in his direction as he knelt down to pick up a few of the now-broken twigs and twist them between his fingers. He straightened back up.

“What?”

“Could you have been quiet for another two minutes? I was trying to focus.”

Soul rolled his eyes, giving the twig another twist. “Focus on what? The deafening silence or the fact that it’s almost nighttime and we’re still lost?”

Maka frowned and leaned over to pluck the twig out from between his fingers. “Very funny, smart-ass. I thought I heard something in the woods.”

“It’s too early for you to start hallucinating, Maka, we haven’t even been lost for a day.”

“I’m not kidding.”

“Neither am I.”

Maka swatted him on the shoulder as he stuck his tongue out at her. He shrugged her off, giving her arm his own flick before yawning and cracking his neck. “What we should really be doing is looking for a place to camp out for the night.”

“So we’re just gonna ignore whatever I heard in the woods?”

Soul rolled his eyes yet again and Maka found herself hoping he got stuck like that. “I’m sure your imaginary monsters are very scary, but we’ve been walking all day and I’m gonna pass out in the leaves if we don’t stop soon.”

Maka glared at him as he knelt down to pick up more of the broken twigs.

There was a moment of silence, a brief lull in the conversation, and that’s when Maka heard it loud and clear. The rattle of metal, sounding not a few yards from the pair. Soul heard it too this time, his face falling at the reality of Maka’s imaginary monster. Unfortunately, the stab of nervousness in her chest was too much for her to feel any satisfaction at being right. Instead she stiffened, clutching Blair close to her chest as she slowly turned towards the location of the sound.

Up in the tree branches, about fifteen feet away, sat a crow, its faded blue eyes fixed on them. The bird seemed to sway back and forth, its head angled downwards, but its eyes were focused. Its feathers were scruffy and patched in places, as if it had been plucked raw, and a thin metal chain dangled from one of its feet. At the end of the chain hung a small, glass lantern swirling with a deep red and purple glow that illuminated the creature from the bottom, showing off the jagged crack that split its beak. Maka hadn’t been the only one to notice it. Blair’s ears pricked, her eyes narrowing on the small animal, and before Maka could tighten her grip, the black cat had launched herself towards the crow. The bird jerked backwards, escaping the cat by a few inches and letting out a very loud, very _human_ , scream of terror.

The cat sunk her claws into the branch and teetered treacherously as she swatted at the bird. One paw managed to catch the chain around its leg and yanked the creature closer. The bird let out a wail of protest, flapping frantically as it was pulled out of the sky. Only barely audible over the screaming was a gentle metallic click. Blair pulled her eyes away from the crow, only to be face to face with a tiny black and purple imp creeping out of the now open lantern. It leaned close, the metallic “X” wrapped around the front of its head pressing against the cat’s nose. Beneath it, the head split open into a previously hidden mouth, jaws stretching wide with huge teeth and ropes of saliva that hung down from its chin. The two stared at each other before the demon let out an earsplitting screech.

Maka covered her ears, but even that couldn’t stop the waves of sound from smashing through her skull. She was knocked off balance, stumbling backwards into Soul, who tried his best to keep them both on their feet. Blair was knocked from the branch, falling to the ground, stunned. Her pupils had shrunk to pinpricks and her fur fluffed as her claws dug deep into the soil beneath her. The trees rattled with the force of the sound, leaves breaking loose and falling to the ground. The noise seemed to stretch on for minutes on end before the creature snapped its mouth shut. Blair got up and fled behind Soul’s legs, shaking with fear as she tried to put as much distance between herself and the creature as possible.

“Ragnarok…” The voice was soft and mumbled, nearly impossible to hear over the ringing left in their ears from the terrible scream. It must have been the bird, still hovering where Blair had chased it, seemingly the only thing unaffected by the noise.

The black thing ignored its carrier and slowly turned to face the group. Its eyes seemed to move independently from the body, lingering on where Blair once sat until the head had turned fully, then snapping to Maka and Soul. Its jaw dropped open once more. “Gupipi.”

They ran.

They hadn’t even bothered to look where they were going, tearing off blindly into the trees. The only thing that mattered in that moment was getting away from that thing. Maka’s head throbbed, ears still burning from the strength of the monster’s sound, and she could barely see ahead of her as the forest blurred past. Her heart was in her throat, pounding in her eardrums and rattling her brain. She had no idea how long she ran, time blurred as all the brain cells that managed to leave the experience unscrambled had put their focus on running, but eventually her legs couldn’t keep pace and she fell to a stumbling walk, gripping tight on the branches of the trees for any sort of support for her exhausted body. Soul was on her heels, staggering to a halt and jutting out an arm to help catch his falling partner. She took it, letting her body crumple against his as he leaned against one of the many tree trunks. They were both heaving, sucking in heavy gulps of air to try and slow their racing hearts.

Soul tilted his head back against the wood of the tree trunk and took another gasping breath. “What the _hell_ was that thing?”

“My imaginary monster,” Maka muttered, twisting so that her back was pressed against Soul’s chest. There was no humor in her voice, still ragged and scratchy from the lack of proper air. Soul simply groaned and tightened his arm around Maka. Slowly they were both catching their breaths, but their hearts were still thundering. Blair was curled tight around they legs, visibly panting, but alert, as if she expected something to come charging out of the woods after them.

Maka pushed herself up, standing on shaky legs for a moment before steadying. Soul stood as well, taking a few paces away from the tree to glance around. They must have been running for awhile, because the fading light had turned to dying and the forest was submerged in a darkening sunset.

Maka shuddered. The night woods were far creepier than they had been only a few minutes ago. The knowledge that they weren’t alone in the woods was terrifying and the darkness felt like a cover for more strange demons to pop out and swallow her whole. And even worse, they’d lost any chance of backtracking, the blind run having completely abandoned the path they been treading.

Her breath caught as she heard a noise, a low growling coming from the cat at her feet. It was Blair, crouched with her claws unsheathed, glaring into the woods. Despite her better judgement, she strained her ears and heard the unmistakable crinkle of footsteps drawing closer.

Soul paled as well, but they’d just finished a sprint. Neither of them had the energy to run off again, and there was no promise that whatever this was wouldn’t try to pursue them. Never once taking her eyes off the direction of the noise, Maka leaned over and wretched a large stick off the lower branches of a tree.

Pulling a brave face, she held the stick in front of her like a weapon ready to strike.

Even still, she couldn’t help the tremors of terror that ran down her spine as the crunching grew louder and louder. She willed her legs to please, please stay still, and though her hands quivered, she kept her stick poised. Blair had crawled in front, hackles raised and the fur on the back of her neck fluffed up like a lioness defending her cubs. Soul was tense with his hands curled into fists and his shoulders raised. A lamp swung into view, this time flickering with a warm orange flame instead of red and purple light. Holding the lantern, clad in white robes and a practiced smile, stood a young man.

He couldn’t be older than 25, probably 20, with short blonde hair and pale skin. From his white robe, it was easy to guess that he was religious in some way. The hand that wasn’t gripping the lantern rose to wave at the group and Maka couldn’t help but let some of the tension out of her back. He seemed… odd, to say the least, but at the very least he looked harmless, which is more than anyone could say for their last encounter.

Soul relaxed beside her as the young man picked his way through the thick foliage towards them. By the time he reached them, only Blair was still on edge. With him much closer now, Maka could see his eyes, deep blue and misty. The man dipped his head to them and Maka could see the earbuds pressed into his ears. Soul gave an awkward wave as the young man straightened up once more. “Uh, hey there, dude.”

Maka had to resist the urge to swat him for such a lovely and eloquent greeting.

The man didn’t seem phased, still smiling and unthreatening as he waved back. “Hello there, I don’t think we’ve met before. It’s not often I run into others within these woods.”

Not letting Soul make a fool of himself Maka held out a hand for the man to shake. She pulled on a smile, as genuine as she could given the situation. “Nope, we’ve never met! My name’s Maka and this is Soul.”

Soul waved again as the young man graciously accepted Maka’s handshake. “Pleasure to meet you, Maka and Soul. My name is Justin.”

Maka grinned. “Pleasure to meet you, Justin!”

He stepped back a few steps to get a good look at the pair. “So, what has you two children out in the woods so late?”

Maka bit her lip, she didn’t exactly want to admit that the two of them ended up hopelessly lost in the depths of the trees.

“We got lost.” Thankfully she had Soul around to answer life’s toughest questions with the most basic and blunt answers possible. The man, Justin, simply nodded.

“Most people do.” He took a step back, giving them a once over before noticing Blair for the first time. She hissed as their eyes met, pressing tight against Maka’s ankles to which Maka gave her a light tap with her shoe to silence the cat. Fortunately, Justin didn’t seem at all put-off. “Have you any place to rest?”

They both shook their heads as Justin’s eyes widened with surprise. “Surely you didn’t plan to spend the night out here with the Beast prowling about?”

Maka felt her heart drop, the memory of the screeching black demon still fresh and terrifying in her mind, while Soul paled, taking a protective step closer to Maka. “What do you mean ‘the Beast’?”

“The Beast of the woods, have you not heard of him? He’s a great and terrifying creature who makes his home under the cover of night, turning unworthy travelers into stone statues.” He tilted his head. “You truly hadn’t heard of him?”

They shook their head and Justin’s brow furrowed thoughtfully. There was few moments of silence as Maka watched his blue eyes flicker. Finally he held out a hand. “I have a place you could spend the night, if you’d like, a church where the beast won’t reach you.”

She glanced over to Soul who nodded, then back to Justin. A head nudged against her leg, Blair gazed up at her, and if Maka didn’t know better, she’d say the cat looked almost worried. Despite that, she took his hand.

===

Maka was surprised at how short the walk to the church was. It couldn’t have taken more than ten minutes. Perhaps if Maka and Soul had had more luck in their charge, they would’ve found it without even needing Justin’s assistance. He lead the way, lantern keeping the path lit for them as Maka slowed to drink in the scenery.

The church was dark and grey, built out of a heavy, weathered stone that seemed ready to crumble away at a moment's notice. It had windows, but the glass was so worn and so cracked that it was impossible to see the inside of the building. A small stream flowed past the church, likely the only thing in the clearing that had seen any movement in decades. But none of that compared to what Maka saw as she looked up. The sky, pinkish with the fading day and peppered with the suggestion of future stars, hung clear and open above the church. For the first time in hours, Maka Albarn looked up and saw the sky.

She stared as long as she could, drinking up the fading light and blurring colors, letting it soak into her skin and flow through her veins. When was the last time she’d looked at the sky for so long? She heard the rustle of fabric as Soul moved to stand beside her.

“Lovely night, isn’t it?” That was Justin, standing with a hand on the door of the church. He leaned against it, crossing his arms. “Just let me know when you wish to be let in.”

Maka felt her face heat self consciously and, as much as she thought she could stare at it for hours, she turned her gaze away from the sky. His words hadn’t been accusatory at all, but even just pointing out her fixation was enough to fluster her. She straightened up and took a step towards the church door, Soul following behind her. “We’re ready.”

Justin nodded and gently pressed on the large wooden entrance. It opened with a dull creek, pouring warm candlelight into the clearing. He brought his hand to his ear and slipped the earbuds out of his ears, allowing them to daggle at his neck. Soul gave him a look of surprise.

“You had earbuds in?”

Justin nodded.

“... What were you listening to?”

He lifted the little skull piece, twisting it in his fingers as he answered. “Typically rock, though lately I’ve been feeling jazz as well.”

Soul slid his arms into his pocket. “You get power out here?”

Justin shook his head. “No, that doesn’t work like that here.”

Soul raised an eyebrow, but before he could press further, Justin stepped into the church.

The first thing that hit Maka about the church was its size. It was one room, with what looked like a closet at the far end, and it wasn’t that large of a room anyways. It felt almost cramped, though that was likely because of the second thing Maka noticed about the building. The entire place was filled to the brim with human-sized stone statues.

_“The Beast of the woods, have you not heard of him? He’s a great and terrifying creature who makes his home under the cover of night, turning unworthy travelers into stone statues.”_

It couldn’t be a coincidence, Justin himself was the one that had told them. Maybe it was some sort of memorial, bringing the travelers he didn’t reach in time here so that they could rest in peace. She frowned. There was no way Justin could’ve dragged them all here, he was no larger than Soul and likely thinner. How did they end up here?

She padded over to one of the statues near the door. It was set in a sitting position, facing forward.She knelt down and placed a hand on the statue’s leg to steady herself. Her breath caught in her throat. Etched into the statue’s granite face, right in the center of its forehead, was a glaring third eye. She shook her head, trying to rid herself of the burst of fear that had surprised her so suddenly. It was just a statue.

She stood up and glanced around. It seemed all the statues had that third eye, all located in the center of the forehead. It gave her chills, but she tried her best to ignore it. Perhaps that was what happened when the Beast caught you.

Justin had made his way down the aisle and now stood at the altar. Soul had followed him. Blair wasn’t with him. She felt a rush of panic before remembering the way the cat had hissed at Justin. She had probably chosen to stay outside. Maka took a moment to glance out the window and sure enough, Blair had curled herself against the great wooden door of the church.

Maka moved to follow the two boys and felt a chill run down her spine. It felt almost as if the third eyes of the statues were following her as she moved.

“So, quick question,” Soul said, brushing his fingers over the arm of one of the many figures, “if the Beast you were talking about comes out at night, like you said, then why were you in the woods?”

Justin quirked an eyebrow before reaching out to give Soul a gentle pat on the shoulder. He frowned, shaking off the older man. “The Beast only ever targets the lost, those ones he deems unworthy and unfit to reside in this forest.”

He rested a hand on the statues and curled his fingers, letting his nails scrape slowly across it’s rough surface. Maka winced at the noise. “I have never been lost here. I know exactly why I’m in these woods. The Beast lets me stay for a reason.”

Maka’s eyes narrowed, the way he talked about the Beast was seeming less like fear and more like a sort of reverence. Suddenly the building felt less like a memorial and more like a shrine dedicated to the monster.

A flash of color blinked from the corner of her eye. She blinked in surprise and glanced over, only to be met with the cold grey stone of the church walls. Her brow furrowed and she felt a shiver run down her back. She could’ve sworn she’d seen something move down there. Shaking her head, she turned back to the center of the church

Justin paused at the just before the altar, eye narrow and glancing about as if he was looking for something. Soul frowned. “You okay, dude?”

“Yes, yes, I just thought I’d seen something moving somewhere out of the corner of my eye…” His voice sounded almost puzzled and Maka felt a small flare of relief that she hadn’t been the only one seeing movement out of the corners of her eye. “Perhaps, I simply imagined it… ah!”

His eyes lit up and she followed his gaze to one of the statues, a crouching one, with all three of its eyes fixed downwards. At the statue’s feet, crouched a large, black spider.

From everything she’d seen of Justin so far, she’d fully expected him to take the tiny creature in his hands and let it outside himself. As he walked over, she was just waiting for him to kneel and hold out a hand, just as he had done for the two of them. She became less sure as he stood in front of the spider, shoe tilted upwards. “Pesky creature.”

Justin smiled at the spider, just as he had smiled at them when they met in the woods. Suddenly, the look was less inviting and friendly. She knew exactly what he planned to do to the arachnid.

Justin pressed his foot down on top of the body of the spider, holding it in place as its legs squirmed and scrambled. She could hear it, the legs scraping against the stone floor in shrill scratches, almost as if the creature was screaming. It was just a spider…

Its legs seized upwards as he pressed harder, like a flinch of pain. And this time it had to be a scream because the legs on the ground had been raised skyward in a prayer for mercy and were no longer running across the stone. Maka swallowed thick and heavy. She wanted to turn away, not watch the little thing suffer. There was no way she’d be a part of the audience of three eyed statues watching the helpless arachnid’s execution.

But before she could close her eyes, Justin let his full weight fall and Maka swore she heard the crunch as the thin appendages seized and curled inwards before ceasing to move. Her stomach felt sick as he removed his foot and stepped back.

It was just a spider, she knew it was. She’d killed them herself before. But something about watching Justin do it, so slowly, with all these statues watching felt wrong.

Justin didn’t seem bothered, though, turning back to the front of the church without any other acknowledgement towards the now-dead creature. She had to turn to Soul, just to make sure that she wasn’t the only one unnerved. Soul had his eyes locked on the corpse as well, skin pale and eyes wide. He seemed almost more disturbed by the event than she had been, still transfixed on the spot where it happened.

The sound of Justin’s voice cut through their shock and they both turned to face him as he spoke. “The church doesn’t have much in terms of sleeping arrangements, but I’m sure I could set you up with some blankets and a pillow out here. It’s not much but it’s far better than anything you could find in the woods.”

Maka’s heart sunk, the incident with the spider had distracted her from Justin’s original inquiry. She no longer felt safe with the idea of sleeping in here with him and from the way Soul grabbed her arm, she could tell he didn’t either. Swallowing her fear and the shakiness in her throat, she spoke, “As much as we appreciate the offer, I think Soul and I will have to be leaving now.”

Justin stopped, turning back to face her with raised eyebrows. “Really? I had thought the two of you wished to spend the night here?”

This time it was Soul who stepped in, offering a halfhearted chuckle. “We thought so too, but we decided it’d probably be better to walk through the night and get closer to the end of the forest.”

“And you aren’t scared of the beast?”

The prospect of a beast wasn’t nearly as terrifying as the reality of Justin standing before them, but they would never say that. Instead Soul just shrugged. “We’ll take our chances.”

Justin paused, his smile never faltered but the look in his eyes hardened. His words words slow and deliberate. “Are you positive? I can promise you, it isn’t a hassle to allow you to sleep here.”

“I promise you, we don’t need it, but thanks anyways.”

Justin held their gaze for a long moment before finally nodding as if it was his choice, not Maka’s or Soul’s, as to whether they were permitted to leave. “Very well, I wish you the best in your travels.”

As they turned to leave, Maka risked a glance back to where the body of the spider lay and felt her heart drop. The space was empty, clean, as if it had been scrubbed raw of the guts and sin of murder. There wasn’t even a mark; the area before the statue looked as pristine as it had before the creature made itself known. But it happened, she knew it had, the scratching, the screaming, the snap; it made her stomach turn. Would the rest of the corpse still be there, burned into the bottom of Justin’s foot?

Something moved. A little shudder at the top edge of her vision. Shaking, she slid her eyes upwards, trailing over the marble edges and gazing straight into the three-eyed glare of the stone statue. It wasn’t looking up before.

===

The candles of the church had kept it lit as daylight slipped away outside. By the time Soul and Maka stepped out of the stony entrance and reunited with their cat, night had already fallen. The sky was an inky black, dappled with pinpoints of white stars. The moon had yet to pass over the clearing, leaving the night feeling empty without its centerpiece. Maka frowned— she would’ve liked to see the moon just once before returning to the thick of the forest. But the strange colors in the corner of her vision and the three eyed statues which seemed to watch her every move were more than enough of a reason to leave the clearing quickly.

She could still feel it, triads of eyes boring holes in her back as she stepped off the cracked stairs and into the grass. Or maybe it was Justin, who hadn’t left the doorway of the church, standing and watching them with that same rehearsed smile. The one that hadn’t left his face since he met them. Maka felt a chill run down her spine. Justin’s presence was no longer welcome and for a moment she was afraid that if his bangs were brushed away from his forehead, she’d look and see a third, red eye staring back. The sooner they could get away, the better.

She turned back to the church, taking one last glance at Justin. He was still standing there, just as she’d predicted, grinning and watching. Her eyes connected with his and she slowly brought a hand up to wave goodbye, trying her best to hide the discomfort squirming under her skin. He waved back, but didn’t move.

Soul placed a hand on her shoulder and nudged her towards the woods. His eyes were narrowed and his face had gone pale, as if he’d seen a ghost or a demon. She moved his hand off of her shoulder and clasped it with her own, running her thumb in gentle circles over the back of it. Blair nudged up against his leg, purring gently, keeping her eyes on the church as her tail drifted back and forth. He relaxed slightly, the tension flowing down his arm and into Maka’s palm. He squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath.

“You alright?” she whispered, leaning close to his ear. He nodded.

“Yeah, I just- let’s get out of here…” He opened his eyes and shot one last look wary at the church, before facing Maka. Together they turned away from the old church, with all its eyes, and set foot back into the woods.

===

Out of view of the teenagers, Justin stood at the church's entrance and watched as they disappeared into the forest. He waited, smiling and still, even after the trio had long disappeared from sight. The moon had finally drifted above the treeline.

Its eyes stared down, sunken and deranged, as the grin that stretched at its mouth widened. From between its teeth, a stream of red began to trickle down its lips and off its chin. The blood dribbled down, bubbling out of every crevice, every pore in the moon’s estranged smile. It fell in heavy drops and thick ropes of viscous liquid streaming down from the sky. It coiled on the rooftop of the church, pooling into puddles that over flowed and slid down the wall. It poured over windows and off statues. A drop slid down the front of the door, followed by another, then another, until the flow of blood began to obscure the entrance, sealing the gateway between it and the forest.

Before the thick red liquid could completely cover the path between the two strange worlds, a scarf decorated with three piercing red eyes slipped out from the shadows and wound itself around Justin’s neck. The contact seemed to break the trance that had fallen over the young man and with a fond grin, he reached up to touch the fabric. In the last few seconds before the church was completely consumed, Justin turned around and disappeared back into the darkness of the building.

Somewhere a bell tolled and a voice began to sing. Blood drowned the clearing.


	2. Chapter 2

There it was again, the sound of a jingling chain that had been plaguing the pair since they left the church. It started up once the stone building had been out of sight for a decent amount of time, barely audible over the hissing of the breeze through tree branches, but undeniably _there_. Maka had halted the group the first time she’d heard it, and she and Soul scanned the endless forests around them, but the second they stopped, the noise ceased as well. They would carry on walking for a few minutes, before the noise would pick back up, even louder than it had been. And every time they would stop to look around only to find nothing. This went on for hours, to the point where Maka had figured out how long it took after every stop for the jingling to start once more and the cycle to repeat. This time had been much louder than before, meaning the creature must be close. As the clock in her head clicked down, Maka let her hands clench, ready to grab the bird if it tried to run again or grab the cat should she feel rebellious. When the time came for the clinking to start, Maka whipped around, hands bunched into fists ready to fight, only to find herself face to face with nothingness.

Her stance never faltered, eyes scanning the corners of the forest for any sort of hiding place.

“Where are you going?”

The words were mumbled right behind her ear, so close she could feel the brush of breath against her skin. Her heart jolted as a needle of shock pierced her chest and she spun on her heels, turning to glare at the familiar creature.

The crow sat watching them, just as it had before, vacant eyes failing to meet theirs as they drifted to the ground. The lantern still hung beneath it, flickering with the same distorted light. The bare patches on its chest had grown slightly, tinted red as though new feathers had been plucked recently. Maka narrowed her eyes at the bird, glancing at the lantern warily. It tensed, raising its wings as if to fly away, before looking down at the fire and slowly drawing them closed again.

“Don’t look at me like that…” it whimpered. “I don’t know how to deal with your eyes…”

So it was the bird that spoke. She was face to face with a talking crow. A talking crow with a lantern demon and a weird obsession with following her and her best friend. Disney had definitely overhyped the idea of talking animals; this wasn’t magical, it was straight up weird and Maka wanted to end this confrontation as soon as possible. “You’ve been following us.”

The crow didn’t respond, its eyes drifting blankly from side to side over the ground in front of her. It tilted its head. “The woods are deep, it’s easy to get lost here…”

The observation was quiet and devoid of inflection, too empty to be casual. Coupled with the way the creature swayed and avoided eye contact, the bird was _creepy_. She had forgotten how bedraggled and vacant the crow had looked when she first saw it. Understandable, considering that screaming black demons were a bit more memorable, but now, having to stare down the bird alone, the glazed over look in its eyes made the hairs on the back of her neck rise.

“Are you lost too?” the crow said. It had stopped drifting, fixing its gaze on the ground in front of Maka, but still refused to meet her eyes. She didn’t answer.

“I’m getting tired of this!” The lamp swung open as a disconcertingly familiar voice tore through the wood. Maka froze, watching as black imp slipped out of the lantern like a liquid, pooling into a loose humanlike form, before hardening and fixing its round, white eyes on the bird above it. “If you don’t quit being a pussy about this, I’m gonna start pulling out your feathers when you fall asleep!”

The imp had grabbed fistful of black feathers as it shrieked, yanking at the bird, who whined in response. “You can’t do that! Then I’ll run out of feathers and I won’t be able to fly anymore! I don’t think I can deal with walking through the woods! No- Ragnarok, stop!”

The crow thrashed about in the imp’s grasp before jutting out a talon and scratching across the creatures face. It hissed, snapping backwards and burying its face in its tiny, round hands. “Don’t scratch me, you fucking feather foot! You know how much that shit hurts?! My eye’s gonna get infected now, and then it’s gonna fall out and it’ll be all your fault! What will you say then, huh Crona!?”

The bird, likely Crona, tightened its grip on the branch and hung its head ever-so-slightly, as though the action was a careless compulsion rather than genuine sorrow. “... Sorry Ragnarok…”

“Damn right you are.” The spirit gave the bird one last hit, before pulling itself up to rest atop the lantern. Its cueball-like eyes shifted away from the swaying bird and down to Soul and Maka. “Huh, forgot they were still here.”

Maka was paralyzed, not with fear exactly, but with something similar, laced tightly with absolute and total bewilderment. _This_ was the demon that had screamed at them in the woods? This was the creature that had left them frozen with terror then sent them tearing through the trees? It was so… immature. Like some sort of whiny five year old fighting with a sibling. That sibling being a talking crow. Though, on the other hand, this was the most emotion she’d seen out of the crow since she’d first seen it. Somehow seeing these two creatures as squabbling siblings made the whole event less frightening and much more absurd. Was that an improvement? She supposed so.

The imp, Ragnarok, gave the bird another jab in the chest. “Well? Go on Crona!”

“Ah… alright…” The crow nudged it off and glanced nervously at the pair once more. “...You are lost, right?”

It sounded less numb, less creepy and mysterious and more nervous, like the creature had been turned off for the first half of their encounter, and the imp was what it needed to re-energize the emotion inside it. Unfortunately, the emotions inside it seemed to be little more than fear. Choking down all of the _many_ questions bubbling inside her, Maka gave a very slow nod.

The bird seemed to brighten, marginally at least, and worked it’s talons in and out of the wood beneath it. “We-we can help you, um, if you’d like…”

Her eyes narrowed and Soul stiffened beside her. The last time they’d gotten help hadn’t turned out so great. The bird kept talking. “We know someone, a woman named Medusa, she’ll get us all out, i-if you’ll come with us.”

“Why should we trust you?”

The crow’s head tilted, a frown etched onto its beak. “What other options do you have?”

Her lips set as she glared up at the bird. She didn’t want to admit that it was right, but at the same time, their only other option was more aimless wandering. A guide would be _nice_ but she kind of preferred it not be some strange talking crow with a demon in a box.

Speaking of said demon in a box, the black imp let out a groan. “Oh please! What have you got to lose here?! It’s not like this fucking feather foot can do you any harm. And besides, if you get tired of them, they make a fantastic stress reliever, see?!”

With that the imp whipped around and grabbed fistfuls of feathers on either side of the birds face and yanked it- well them- back and forth. The crow let out a whine. “Ragnarok! Ragnarok, stop it it! You’re gonna stretch out my cheeks, Ragnarok!”

She wasn’t sure if it was out of pity or out of a genuine interest in their offer, but she found her voice rising above the clamor of the two creatures. “Alright.”

Soul gawked at her while the imp stopped and swivelled it’s head. It’s mouth didn’t appear, thank god, but she could still practically see the grin in it’s eyes. “See Crona, I told you they’d say yes!”

Letting the bird go, he slunk back into his lamp, letting it close with a pop. The bird shuddered and made an attempt to neaten their feathers. “Sorry about him…”

Soul shrugged. “No big deal.”

Maka tried her best to smile for the bird, as forced and stiff as it may have appeared. “Well, I’m Maka, this loser is Soul, and our cat’s name is Blair. You are?”

The bird shifted its gaze to the forest floor again, giving no indication that they intended to answer. Her grin tightened.

“...Crona, right?”

The bird nodded and made a noise that was neither affirmative nor denying. Maka sighed. This was already shaping up to be a _lovely_ partnership.

===

Unfortunately, Maka had been right about Crona’s usefulness. They’d forgotten which direction they’d need to go to find this Medusa woman, so around the last hour of walking had been the same aimless wandering that they’d done their first night. Except now the comfortable banter that had built between Soul and Maka no longer existed. The awkward presence of the crow was enough to keep down any potential joking. Oh they’d tried. But every attempt to bring Crona into conversation resulted in averted eyes, uncomfortable noise and mutterings of ‘I can’t deal with this.’ Even conversation not involving them were ruined by their whimpering.

Maka felt bad, sure, but mostly it was annoying. She wanted to like the crow, but not only did they prove to be a pretty useless companion, they actively made conversation more difficult. Maka could only be thankful that Ragnarok hadn’t felt the need to express himself in the few minutes they’d been walking.

She supposed she was lucky that the forest was so lovely in the pinkish, early morning light. If she couldn’t engage in conversation, at least she could indulge herself in the beauty of the trees around her. Pearls of dew sat round and perfect atop golden leaves, reflecting the gentle peach of morning. The haziness of the forest was only just starting to lift, leaving the area with a sort of ethereal glow. The thick air smelled sweet. It truly was a lovely place, if nothing else.

Still, she couldn’t hide the joy on her face when she saw the forest thinning ahead .

It wasn’t anything familiar, this certainly wasn’t the location from which they entered the woods, but either way, it was a way out. In front of them, the forest opened into rolling patches of farmland, filled to the brim with thick, orange pumpkins. Farming fields meant either a farm house or a village nearby, and if they were lucky, they’d be willing to take pity on a pair of teenagers and their weird talking crow. Blair rested at her feet, tail lashing with excitement. Soul rocked back on his heels. “Safe to say we’re gonna check it out?”

Maka nodded, Crona whimpered.

He grimaced, looking over the open pumpkin fields and gazing up at the grinning sun. He ran a hand over the bare patch of skin on the back of his neck. Maka frowned sympathetically. It was a pretty bright day too.

“Do you need to borrow my jacket?” she asked, beginning to unbutton the black trench coat. Soul shook his head.

“I’ll deal. I’m sure whoever manages this all will have some kind of sunblock or aloe when we find them.” He grinned, casting a sideways glance at his companion. “Besides, you’re so tiny, I doubt that jacket would cover much.”

She huffed and swatted his shoulder. “Asshole, I hope you fry in the sun.” He snickered as she glared at him, readying another punch before Crona cleared their throat nervously. They looked confused, perched on the handle of their lantern, head tilted to the side. Maka shared their confusion for a moment until she remembered that Crona didn’t actually know anything about her and Soul.

“Soul has albinism,” she explained. “He burns in the sun really easily so I offered to give him my jacket so he could cover up, but he’d rather be a jerk.” She shot one last nasty glare at her companion while Soul shrugged.

“The sun is a deadly laser, but I can put up with a few minutes. It wouldn’t be the first time I got burned and it won’t be the last.” Crona’s eyes widened with understanding before sinking back to their typical guarded frown. They sunk down on their feet, eyes shifting back to the woods behind them. The latch on the lantern popped open and Ragnarok burst free.

“Hey shitlickers! You aren’t going to find anything out there! You think Crona and I wouldn’t have checked everywhere else before settling for you two? There’s no one out there!” Crona opened their beak to comment but Ragnarok jostled the lantern, making them squawk and scramble to realign themself. “You’re wasting your time! If you really want to get out of these woods, let us take you to Miss Medusa. Crona is fucking useless, but at least they can listen! Save pasty here the trouble and follow us!” Maka’s eye twitched as the imp screeched at them. Did he have to be so rude about everything? Even if he did know the woods much better than she or Soul did, there was no way she’d give in to him when he treated everyone like that. Even Crona looked put off.

“... It wouldn’t hurt to look around…” Crona mumbled, their eyes fixed on the ground beneath them, shifting their weight from foot to foot. Ragnarok’s head snapped backwards, his eyes narrowing on the bird.

“HEY!!! WHO THE HELL ASKED YOU, YOU FLIGHTY PIECE OF SHIT?!” Ragnarok whipped around, raising his fists to try and hit Crona. The bird yelped and fluttered backwards into the air to escape the tiny mass of wrath, but unfortunately the chain wrapped around their leg and dragged the lantern with them. Ragnarok snatched a fist full of Crona’s tail feathers and began to yank and punch, screaming obscenities as the crow frantically scratched at him with their claws. Soul and Maka watched in utter disbelief as the two creatures fought, Crona whining out pleas for Ragnarok to stop as Ragnarok pulled himself up to their head and began beating their skull. They were like two dysfunctional siblings, except one was a bird and the other was an imp creature from hell. Soul sighed, reaching an arm out and grabbing Ragnarok by the tendril that connected him to the lantern. Ragnarok fell off of Crona with a screech of protest and Crona lurched as they hit the end of their chain, falling slightly before recovering and attempting to hover within range.

“We’re wasting time fighting over this, it’s three to one, let’s just explore the damn field already,” Soul muttered. Crona hung their head shamefully while Ragnarok sneered.

“FINE! Have it your way! But when you idiots come out tired and burnt to a crisp with nothing new, don’t come bitching to me!” He stuck out his tongue one last time before retreating into the lantern. What a wretched creature. Soul shook the glass container contemptuously, hoping the little cretin inside would feel the jostling. Unfortunately, Ragnarok wasn’t the only one bound to the lamp. Crona’s wings went limp as their whole body jolted with the force of the shake and they dropped out of the sky, dangling above the ground from their chain.

“Oops, sorry dude.” Soul reached for Crona as he set the lantern down. They hopped out of his hands as soon as it was stable on the ground, ruffling their feathers and humming in acknowledgment.

Stepping into the fields, Maka took a moment to bask in the sunlight, letting the heat flow over her body as she took a deep breath. The air smelled like pumpkins, unsurprisingly, but it was much fresher than the fungus and leaf litter of the woods. A light breeze passed through the open space and blew at the ends of her coat. Maka clapped her hands and turned to the group. “So! Crona, you’ve been here before! Where should we start looking?”

Crona startled and averted their gaze. “Ragnarok was lying, we’ve never been here…”

Maka sighed; it wasn’t a surprise, but it was still a bit disappointing. Now they’d have to comb through the fields without any sort of guidance and they’d have to be quick. Soul said he’d be fine, but he’s just as stubborn as Maka and the sun would undoubtedly bother him. She looked over the fields, filled with pumpkins as far as she could see. A ways away the even ground rose into a small hill. Beyond the rise, plumes of what appeared to be pale smoke rose into the air. That was their best bet if they hoped to find anyone.

Maka knocked the toe of her boot against Soul’s foot. He’d been gazing off too, just as transfixed by the prospect of actual, genuine sunlight and the blue of the sky to really notice the fields around them. Maka’s kick was enough to draw him out of it. He blinked, quirking a brow at her as she pointed off in the direction of the hill. “Does that look like a good place to start looking to you?”

He followed her gaze and shrugged, which in Soul terms was enough affirmation for Maka. “Why not, the smoke seems promising, I guess.”

Crona, who hadn’t been directly involved in the conversation, gave a little hum of acknowledgement, though their eyes showed off the same constant unease and distrust.

Maka trotted ahead towards the path, glancing back and frowning at how Soul and Crona trailed behind at a near snail’s pace. She stopped, tapping her foot and crossing her arms at the sluggish pair. “You could hurry up you know.”

Soul rolled his eyes. “I’d rather not.”

Maka stuck out her tongue and got a wicked idea.Before Soul could get close to her, she spun on her heels and tore into the field. Vaguely she could hear him yell behind her before another pair of footsteps joined hers, chasing her up the hill. She couldn’t help the giddy grin that spread across her face as the breeze rushed past.

===

The rush of relief that came at the top of the hill was nearly enough to restore the energy spent climbing it. At the base of the valley sat a small village, filled with little wooden houses surrounding a larger building in the center. Smoke billowed out of the middle building. Someone had to be living there. Despite her wheezing breaths, Maka couldn’t help but smile.

“JESUS CHRIST!” She heard Soul yell. Maka whipped around to see him leap backwards, nearly knocking Crona out of the air. In front him, a large grey rat had drawn itself up on its hind legs and hissed at him. Its tiny wedge of a head whipped around and narrowed its eyes at Maka. She felt a chill run down her spine at the look in the creature’s face, focused and spiteful, seemingly too human for the split second it watched her. Then, as if nothing had happened, it turned around and scuttled across the path, back into the pumpkins.

In the rush of climbing up the hill and the shock at the rat, Blair had been practically forgotten, trailing at Maka’s heels as she ran and sitting quietly at the hilltop when they stopped. At least, until the rat caught her attention. With a yowl of enthusiasm, Blair charged after the creature, dashing straight into the web of pumpkins.

“BLAIR!” Maka yelled. She lunged and reached for the cat, hand grazing the tip of her tail before she had disappeared into the swaths of vines. She’d moved too quickly, keeling forward with the force of the motion and landing squarely in a pumpkin. She groaned, pushing herself out of the now shattered gourd with one hand and wiping her face with the other. Pumpkin guts squelched between her fingers. Disgusting.

Standing, she cleared off as much of the orange flesh as she reasonably could and scanned the fields for any movement, any sign of the runaway cat. There was nothing, just a wide expanse of unchanging green and orange. With a sigh, she tugged off her black trenchcoat and used it to wipe as much of the sticky liquid and plant remnants off her face as she could. She ran it through her hair, scrubbing roughly, before taking the now ruined garment and tying it around her waist.

“Damn cat... “ Soul said, stepping forward to look over the fields at her side. He shook his head. “She’ll have to tire herself out eventually, we can deal with her later.”

Maka frowned. She didn’t like the idea of leaving the cat on her own, but from her previous fall it was obvious they wouldn't be able to chase her through the fields. They’d just have to ask the village people about finding her once they got there. Soul turned to her and smirked. “Pumpkin’s a good look on you.”

Maka narrowed her eyes, reaching down to grab a handful of crushed gourd and hurling it at Soul’s chest. He stepped out of the way and stuck his tongue out, only to be met with a face full of black fabric and pumpkin innards. Stumbling, he tripped over a vine and landed ass-first in another pumpkin. Maka snickered as he pulled himself up and glanced backwards at the now-soaked seat of his pants. With a grumble of irritation, he used the thrown jacket to mop up the plant remains on his backside.

“Was that _really_ necessary?” He muttered, twisting the fabric of his pants to catch as much pumpkin as he possibly could. Maka stuck out her tongue in response. Once Soul had wiped away as much as he could, he balled up the trenchcoat and passed it back to Maka, who tied it around her waist once more. They turned back to the third and fourth parties, both of which had been unusually quiet. It was almost understandable with Crona— they were probably overwhelmed by all the action, but it was surprising that Ragnarok had yet to let himself out to deliver a taunting jab at how much they’d screwed up.

Crona was hovering where Soul had knocked them, looking down in bafflement at Ragnarok’s lamp, which remained unopened. Soul raised an eyebrow. “No comments from the peanut gallery?”

The bird startled, looking at the pair in surprise, as if they’d forgotten they were there. They shook their head.

“And Ragnarok?” Soul said, with a pointed glare at the lantern. He frowned, stepping forward to tap at the glass door. “Nothing at all?”

Crona whimpered, looking down at the lamp hanging below them. They jostled it gently. “Ragnarok…?”

Nothing. The strange lantern spirit seemed completely unwilling to answer, or even show a sign of leaving his glass container.

Soul watched them in surprise, before grinning and elbowing Maka lightly. “Looks like one good thing came out of all this.”

If he had been talking about anyone else, Maka would’ve chided him for being so rude. But in the few hours Maka had known the imp, Ragnarok had proven to be absolutely wretched. For whatever reason, he wasn’t choosing to come out now and as far as Maka was concerned, that was the best thing that had happened all day. Even Crona didn’t seem eager to disagree with him.

She rolled her eyes with a smile and turned back to the village in the distance. Soul followed her gaze and grinned. “Shall we?”

===

From up close, the village looked much, much emptier. No light shone from within the buildings; some even had plants growing up the sides. Windows were cracked and fences were either rusted or rotted, depending on what each was made of. A few houses had blackened holes worn through the walls. It was an area lost to time and submissive to nature, allowing itself to be overtaken by the pumpkins that would’ve once fed its people.

The sight filled Maka with a wave of unease. Was the village abandoned? It sure looked like it was, from the crumbling architecture to the overgrown field surrounding it. But then, she’d seen smoke coming out of a chimney when she first saw it on the hill. Even now, smoke was visible from deeper within the network of buildings. So someone had to be here. But what if they were just another lost traveller seeking refuge? Or worse– what if they were the reason the rest of the area was so empty? She shuddered at the thought.

But they’d come this far.

Soul stepped forward and pushed at the gate to the village entrance. It wasn’t locked, or if it was, the lock was old enough that it didn’t hold when Soul pushed it. The gate screeched open, creaky with rust. He wiped his hand on his pants, leaving a streak of reddish brown residue across the fabric. He grimaced.

Beyond the gate, tattered rows of buildings line the dirt street. Wood creaked with the gentle force of the wind and Maka felt a stab of fear at the prospect that these buildings could crumble at any minute. Crona lowered their flight, hovering closer to the pair and farther from hazardous houses.

The first few minutes of searching was uneventful and Maka felt her confidence wane as the entrance long disappeared behind them with still no evidence of life. Maka sighed, kicking the door of one of the buildings, then jumping as the entire piece crumbled and fell of the hinges. She glanced around, trying to make sure no one had caught her. She came face to face with Crona, who had been watching her in confusion before jumping with a squeak and fixing their gaze anywhere but on her. She sighed and shot the bird a reassuring smile, to which they flustered and turned to hurry after Soul.

She found Soul standing a few yards away. She called out to him, only to be hushed as he squeezed his eyes shut. She felt a pang of indignance and prepared a sharp remark, but was cut off before she could say anything. “I think I hear music.”

Her bitterness fade instantly and was replaced with a burst of hope. Standing beside him, she followed suit, closing her eyes and trying to listen for any sort of noise she could pick up. A smile spread on her face as she heard it, very faintly, but still there.

The sound of music.

===

The music, as it turns out, was coming from a building in the center of town. It was far louder up close, and for some reason Soul felt the need to identify the genre of music before they entered. Dark cabaret, he’d said. Maka called him a dork. He called her the queen of the dorks. That’s fair, Maka had said.

Smoke poured out a large hole in the center of the building and Maka grinned at the smoky scent of a fireplace. It was a much nicer smell than the dust and pumpkin guts she’d been inhaling for the past hour or so.

The entrance was marked with a giant sliding wooden door, like the kind one would find on a barn. Actually, Maka wouldn’t be surprised if this building was originally a barn. It would fit the area well.

They slid the door open and stepped inside.

Without the wooden separation of the door, the music roared loud and clear. The building was one room, with a large wooden pillar in the center. Dancing throughout the room in some sort of celebration, was a group of shorter people all glad in identical black and white striped robes and mouse masks. Maka shivered.

It didn’t take long for the pair to be noticed. The second the door creaked open, dozens of tiny mouse-masked faces turned in their direction. The music stopped. As did the dancing.

Maka felt the rush of air past her head as Crona darted back out the door. She got the feeling that her and Soul would’ve been close behind her, if not for a voice sounding from the far side of the building.

“Close the door won’t you? You’re letting in a draft.”

A pair of mask figures moved and before Maka and Soul could even attempt to run, the door was slammed shut behind them.

From the shadowed back of the building, a woman stepped out. Maka felt herself flush. The woman was tall, more than twice the height of anyone else in the room and her hair was cut short to frame sharp eyes. But what really caught the eye was her clothes, or lack thereof. The woman was nearly naked, wearing cuffs on her arms with only a draping curtain covering her breast. She wore a skirt as well, a mouse hat. Maka rubbed her cheek to try and rid herself of the blush. She doubt the woman was even wearing a bra.

Beside her she felt Soul bring up a hand, likely to try and conceal his nosebleed. She frowned and gave him a kick in the ankle.

The woman strode through the crowd to stand in front of the teens, looking them over with a scathing glare. “It seems we have visitors.”

It was Maka who found her voice first. “Hi, hello, we’re just passing through, we got lost in the woods and we were hoping-”

“You planned on simply passing through?”

Maka’s smile faltered and she nodded. The woman’s eyes narrowed. “Well, we can’t have that now, can we, not before you receive your punishments for what you’ve done to our village.”

That knocked the friendly look off Maka’s face and before she thought long enough to be afraid, she let out a hiss of anger. “ _What._ ”

“Destruction of property, trespassing…” The woman paused and turned to the crowd behind her. Slowly she waved, as if to draw an invisible line down the mass of people. “Introduction of a deadly predator.”

The crowd parted as a single girl crossed the room. Her mask was split by a long black crack stretching from between its eyes to beneath its nose. The front of her black and white chest was torn and stained with fresh red blood. Blair dangled from her hands by the scruff, screeching and swatting. Her fur was disheveled from her run through the fields and her left ear was sporting a bloody notch, as though the tip had been bitten off. Once the girl had reached the front, she threw Blair to the ground between Maka and the tall woman. The cat scrambled to her feet and gave a final hiss at the woman, who watched her with contempt, before darting behind Maka’s legs. A shocked murmur rippled through the room as all the masks turned to look at Maka and the cat behind her.

The woman’s glare shifted up from Blair to meet Maka’s eyes. “That all seems like grounds for punishment to me. Mizunes?”

A chatter of agreement sounded behind her and Maka felt the blood drain from her face. She hated to admit it, but they should have listened to Ragnarok. Now they were locked in a building with some sort of rat cult staring them down and a looming threat of punishment. Crona must be long gone by now, possibly back in the woods, taking their only lead on escaping with them. Maka grit her teeth.

The lady sniffed, turning away from the trio. “The eastern fields have been ready for harvest for a few days now. You’ll be harvesting the patch closest to the windmill. For every pumpkin you damage, you’ll harvest another fifty square feet. Once that’s been finished, you will assist in the preparation of the pumpkins and the distribution of scarecrows. After that, you should be free to leave.”

Maka’s heart nearly stopped at the woman’s words. Manual labor? That’s all she wanted? From how the woman had been talking, Maka was sure they were about to face much, much worse. Before she could catch her tongue, she found herself asking, “That’s all?”

The woman lifted an eyebrow. “Did you want more?” Soul swatted Maka on the shoulder and she shook her head furiously. The woman scanned the air above them. “You had a bird with you when you came in. Where is it now?”

From within the crowd, one of the Mizunes squeaked, pointing towards the window above the door. Both the woman and the trio glanced up to see Crona peaking around the edge of the window. Upon noticing they’d been spotted, the crow froze and turned to look shamefully at the windowsill. The woman watched them with disinterest. “It might as well assist you in your work, so long as you plan to leave together. Be sure it doesn’t fly away on you again.”

She turned around and took a few steps into the dark depths of the building before pausing. She waved a hand idly. “Don’t even consider trying to escape. I’ll have Mizunes watching you at all times, and I can _personally_ guarantee you won’t be able to leave until I give you permission.”

And with that she disappeared into the darkness.

===

By the time the group had reached the fields, the shock of the encounter with the oddly dressed woman and the Mizunes had begun to fade into a dull anger. Crona had rejoined them outside of the bar and flew along silently as Soul and Maka complained.

“I mean, what gives her the right to punish us like this?! It’s not like we were trying to hurt them. We tripped over _one_ pumpkin and our cat got loose while we were _searching for help_!” Maka swung her arms in frustration. Soul shrugged.

“Yeah, that was pretty uncool of them to put us out here like this. Didn’t even offer us a way home afterwards or anything. “ Soul scoffed.

“And what about that deadly predator garbage, she’s a _cat_. The most she’ll do is thin out this nasty rat problem, God knows they need it.” Maka grimaced as yet another mouse scrambled across the road. Blair curled deeper into her arms as it slipped back into the fields, hissing.

Crona didn’t say anything. They’d been quiet ever since the group left town, which was understandable; they’d abandoned her and Soul with the Mizunes and their leader. Maka would be lying if she said she wasn’t a little angry with the black bird. It was probably for the best that they were choosing to keep their beak shut while everyone else was so irritable.

The windmill was pretty close at this point, maybe a hundred yards off. It was a decrepit old thing, rotting at the base, with gaping holes torn through the wooden frame. The field seemed to have overtaken it, pumpkin vines twisting through the crevices, engulfing most of it with green and orange.

Maka sighed and looked off to the side into the woods. They had to pass a close section of forest to reach the windmill; in fact, the treeline couldn’t be more than a quarter mile off. She could run to it, if she tried. Aside from the rats that seemed to fill these fields, they hadn’t seen anything, let alone a Mizune, that could stop her. She elbowed Soul and nodded towards the trees. “I think I’m gonna try to run.”

Soul furrowed a brow at her. “Didn’t you hear what the woman said? They're gonna stop you before you get there.”

She ignored him, narrowing her eyes at the treeline. There was a path coming up that lead in that direction. “Keep an eye on the treeline, I’m gonna take that right turn. If you see me get into the woods, follow me.”

“Dude, you aren’t gonna make it, stop being an idiot,” Soul said, rolling his eyes. She glared at him.

“What, so I shouldn’t even try?” she snapped. Soul shrugged in defeat.

“Look, do whatever, I don’t care,” he said, “Just don’t crush anything while you’re out there running around like an idiot. The last thing we need is more work when you come back.”

Maka snorted. “I won’t come back because I’m gonna make it to the woods and you’ll be eating your words.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever, just go before someone hears you and stops you before you even get going.” Soul flicked her on the arm. She turned to Crona.

“Crona, want to come with me?” They glanced over at her and seemed to mull it over for a moment. Soul butted in.

“Don’t do it, dude, you don’t want to mess with creepy rat cults. They’ll put a curse on you, or something.” That seemed to convince Crona, their eyes widening as they shook their head. Maka gave Soul an irritated glare.

“Stop trying to scare Crona,”

He just stretched lazily, cracking his back. “Just trying to warn them,”

She crossed her arms, but turned her attention back to the crow. “So you aren’t coming?”

They shook their head once again and muttered a quiet ‘no.’ Maka sighed and took a few steps ahead of the group to get the clearest path to the woods.

“Don’t forget what I said about the pumpkins!” she heard Soul yell. She flashed him a thumbs up, before rocking back on her heels and pelting into the mass of vines. Nobody tried to stop her.

===

Her breath burned in her lungs and scorched her throat as she stumbled to a halt. The forest seemingly hadn’t grown any closer; all she’d managed to do was wear herself out.

Behind her there was a soft chattering. She turned around to see a mouse perched on top of one of the pumpkins, squeaking with its eyes closed as if it was laughing at her. She growled and drew up a leg to kick the irritating rodent, but then hesitated. Maka wasn’t stupid, she knew trying to strike the rat would mean putting her foot through the pumpkin, which that would mean adding another fifty yards of work to everyone’s punishment and defying Soul’s one request. Was it really worth it?

The mouse sneered up at her, its tiny mouth twisted into a grin that dared her to just try and hit it.

Oh, it _absolutely_ was.

She cracked her foot down on the pumpkin with as much strength as she could muster. The mouse squeaked in alarm and dove back into the twisted throngs of vines. Her foot went cleanly into the gourd, leaving a round, boot shaped crater in its wake. She yanked it out, falling backwards into the patch with a groan of frustration.

She pulled herself to her feet, wincing at the throbbing pain in the back of her head. She dusted the dirt off her skirt and shook the excess guts off her boot. Picking up the destroyed pumpkin, she began to trudge back towards the others.

Soul and Crona had only made a few yards of progress towards the windmill since she left, likely having stopped to watch her disappear into the field. They seemed to be walking silently, Crona flying around a foot behind Soul. She jogged to catch up with them. Upon noticing her return, Soul waved. “No luck?”

“Nope.” Maka shook her head, throwing the crater-pumpkin to the ground with a splat. “But I did kick a rat.”

Crona gazed forlornly at the shattered pumpkin on the ground and Soul sighed. “Nice.”

===

The last few minutes of the walk were spent mostly in silence. Maka was still winded from the run, while Soul was bitter over the added work, and Crona was, well… Crona, with Ragnarok still locked up in his sunny prison. At the windmill, they were met by a Mizune, who showed them the markings within which they’d be working. She seemed to notice the pumpkin guts splattering Maka’s boots and brought a hand up to her mask, chattering out a smug laugh. It took all of Maka’s willpower not to punch her as she pointed out the extra patch of land Maka’s temper had earned them. She felt Soul’s glare burning into the back of her head the whole time.

They’d been left with a wagon, the kind that would be pulled by an ox or large horse, a basin of water with some jugs, and no tools. The field was thick enough that it was unlikely that they could reach the outer edge without destroying more pumpkins, so they started at the windmill and worked outwards. Soul knelt down to pull at the pumpkins hanging out into path while Maka set her sights on those growing near the wheels of the cart.

She gave a tug on one of the orange gourds. The plants rustled and the stem connected to her pumpkin drew taught in the tangled mass of foliage. Placing a heavy boot on the green rope, she began to twist the pumpkin. The plant fibers twisted and whitened, separating into individual strands but not breaking from the earth. Maka hissed with effort, letting the pumpkin go with a huff and glancing over to Soul, who was having a similar time trying to break off his own pumpkin.

He screwed his eyes shut and gave one final, fierce tug before keeling forward and dropping the pumpkin. He heaved for a moment and looked up towards the windmill. Crona sat perched in one of the holes, swaying from side to side and watching the pair in confusion.

“Let me guess, you don’t know how to deal with pumpkins?” Soul snapped. They jumped, scrambling off their perch on the windmill and hovering in the air. They shuddered as Soul glared at them, looking down at the ground and slowly dropping out the sky. There wasn’t really much they could do, at least from Maka’s point of view. There was no way little Crona could lift any of the pumpkins, let alone pull one of those suckers off the vine. They stumbled around on the ground for a moment, brushing aside leaves as they hunted around. There were a few smaller stems around the base of the windmill, still nothing Crona could reasonably lift or break, but slightly more manageable.

Maka watched as they nudged away the surrounding plants, wrapping a talon around the vine and pressing it in place. They leaned down and began to peck at it, leaving tiny notches in the fibers until it finally snapped. They frowned and spat on the ground, before hopping on top of the pumpkin and grabbing its stem in their claws. They raised their wings as if to take off and gave a few flaps, but couldn’t manage to lift themself with the weight of the pumpkin. Maka’s eyes widened as she got an idea.

Picking up her pumpkin once again, she twisted it to make it taut before calling over Crona, who was still struggling to lift their own pumpkin. They raised their head in confusion, but obeyed anyways, landing on the orange flesh of Maka’s pumpkin. She pointed to the tight, individual fibers in the pumpkin stem. “Could you do me a huge favor and split a few of these with your beak?”

The crow’s brow furrowed, but they leaned down and began picking away at the white threads. After a second, enough of the pieces had been split that Maka could twist it loose, sending Crona flying off the pumpkin with a squawk of shock.

While Crona fluttered in the air, panting to regain their breath, Maka shot Soul a grin.

===

The pumpkin [icking took less time than they’d anticipated, Crona’s assistance allowed them to quickly and easily pull even the thickest of pumpkins, and before they knew it, tehy were loading the last of the pumpkins into the cart. Blair hadn’t helped, aside from providing the mild entertainment when Soul got irritated enough by her constant winding around his legs to dump a glass of water on her head.

By now, they were all tired, gathering lazily around the water bucket.

Crona opened and closed their beak, swiping their tongue along its edge. They furrowed their brows. “Everything tastes like pumpkin stem… what if I can’t taste anything else ever again?” they whimpered. “I don’t know if I can handle only tasting pumpkin stem…”

Soul patted the edge of the basin, stepping to the side to make room for the bird. “Rinse your mouth out, it’ll get rid of the taste faster.”

Crona nodded, fluttering over and perching on the edge of the bucket. They took their water in large, choking gulps, as if it would be taken away any second and they had to swallow as much as possible. Maka dipped in her own jug and sipped at it. Once Crona was done guzzling water, they sighed and relaxed, trying to take in the air that they’d deprived themself of while drinking. Maka flashed them a grin and a ‘V’ sign. “Thanks for the help Crona, we couldn’t have gotten it done without you!”

The bird grimaced and clicked their nails on the bucket. “It’s my punishment too… I’m supposed to help out…”

Maka smiled anyways. “Still, we couldn’t have done it without you, so thank you, Crona!”

They fixed their eyes on the water of the bucket and Maka would’ve liked to think that they were blushing under all those feathers.

Once they'd all drank their fill, Maka untied the coat from her waist and dunked it in the water, trying the was away any remaining pumpkin guts while she had the chance. A group of Mizunes met the at the wagon and lead them to their next job.

===

For such a messy task, gutting pumpkins was the most fun they’d had all day. For Maka, there was something nostalgic about lopping off the stems of the pumpkins and shoving her arm as far in as she could reach to spoon out all the messy insides. It reminded her of making jack-o-lanterns with her mother, sitting on her lap and letting her larger hands guide Maka’s much smaller ones as they scraped the spoons along the hard fleshy walls of the orange gourd.

Soul had seemed less enthusiastic, at least at first, complaining about the feeling of plant matter under his fingernails and the juice on his hands. He managed to amuse himself by occasionally flicking discarded pumpkin seeds at Maka, an action which quickly became a war between the two to hit the other in the most odd and inconvenient locations possible. At one point Maka had managed to launch one into his mouth as he yawned, and Soul had been steadily hitting her in the ear for the past three shots. Only Crona kept to themself, not really able to help much. They spent their time mostly carrying tools back and forth, lifting pumpkin tops and sweeping away excess guts with their tail. When they weren’t flitting about, they were absently picking at the feathers on their chest. Maka had to fight the urge to nudge their beak away as they pulled little feathers out one by one.

At one point, Soul attempted to involve Crona in their pumpkin wars, flicking a seed that hit them square in the back of the head. They yelped, slipping on pumpkin guts as they whipped back and forth to look for whatever had hit them. Maka knocked Soul on the shoulder and he apologized. That was the last seed aimed at Crona.

It felt…wrong to leave Crona alone to pick at their feathers, but how exactly was she supposed to approach them? Crona and Ragnarok were both new to her; they’d only known each other for a day. Ragnarok had proved himself a habitual liar as well as a generally horrible creature, while Crona was just… quiet, nervous, and kind of creepy, if she was being honest. All she knew about them was that they were lost too but knew of a way out somewhere, and even that left her with a whole slew of other unanswered questions. How was she supposed to connect with a talking bird?

The ‘talking bird’ part was still a hang up for her. The wood had proven itself to be incredibly weird, full of strange churches, cults of mouse-masked women, and a supposed monster haunting the nights. But Crona and Ragnarok were by far the strangest. The church and the cult, while unusual, weren’t completely impossible to find, and they’d never encountered the Beast, so for all she knew, that Justin character was warning them of an old urban legend. But Crona and Ragnarok were right here, in front of her. Talking animals were things that happened in her story books, not in real life, and yet these two were anomalously and undeniably real. She desperately wanted to know more about them.

She would’ve asked earlier, had Ragnarok not introduced himself. Ragnarok seemed to have a way of derailing any potential trains of thought through his migraine-inducing screeching. Asking any questions around him was like asking an angry chihuahua. He’d make a lot of noise, but none of it would mean anything.

But maybe now, with Ragnarok strangely quiet and unwilling to leave his lamp, Crona might be willing to ease her curiosities. Maka took a few more deep scrapes at the inside of her pumpkin, toying with the words on her tongue before speaking. “Hey, Crona?”

The bird tilted their head up, peeking out of the ruffled feathers they’d been pulling. They watched her, not answering, but clearly paying attention, waiting for her to continue. “Can I ask you some questions?”

Crona stiffened and shifted their eyes warily. They seemed to be weighing their answers, shifting back and forth on their feet. “Am I allowed to pass?”

Maka shrugged with a small smile. “Of course, you don’t have to answer if I ask something uncomfortable.”

They nodded slowly. “O-okay then,”

Maka grinned and clapped her hands. “Alright!” She laced her fingers together and took moment to consider where she’d begin. “ So, have you always been able to talk?”

“Pass.” Crona fixed their eyes on the table beneath them as they answered, their voice distant and detached. Well. That was quick. She had told them they could pass, but she was at least expecting a few answers before the first pass. Not matter, she could ask other questions.

“Have you ever met any other talking animals?”

“Pass.”

“Did something happen that made you able to talk?”

“Pass.”

This was getting excessive. Maka reached deep into her pumpkin and yanked out another handful of guts, plopping it on the table. “You’ve gotta answer at least some of my questions.”

The bird trotted over to the new pile of pumpkin guts and swept it away with their tail. “Why?”

Maka frowned, feeling a little indignant that Crona found it appropriate to ask her questions while refusing to answer hers. “Well, what’s the point of me asking questions if you aren’t going to answer them?”

Crona brushed a few of the bits of orange out of their tail feathers. “I didn’t ask you to question me, you can stop anytime. It’d be nice if you stopped, actually.”

Soul couldn’t stifle a snort that escaped his lips. Maka glared at him for a moment before returning to Crona. She sighed in defeat. “Look, can you at least tell us a little bit about yourself? If we’re gonna travel together like this we should at least know a little about you.”

Crona frowned, scratching at the table. “I’m not a crow I’m a person, that's why I can talk. I got cursed, Ragnarok too. Can we stop talking about it now? I’d like it if we stopped talking about it.”

The rest of the job was performed in near silence. Soul flicked a pumpkin seed at Maka’s ear. Maka flicked one back in his eye. Crona plucked their feathers.

===

The wait for their Mizune escort was longer this time. Soul and Maka propped themselves up against a nearby fence while Crona perched on one of the posts. The bird had calmed down considerably since they last spoke, now watching the fields with an almost serene look. They let their wings relax and spread limply so that the air could flow under them. Maka watched them fondly. In the whole day she’d spent with the crow, this was the most relaxed they’d been.

They turned and her eyes narrowed at the sight of something strange on their back.

Between their shoulders, spreading out in tendrils and tiny cracks, sat puffed, pink, exposed skin. It didn’t seem irritated, like another patch they’d been pulling at. The pattern was too intricate for that anyways. No, the patch looked like scars, skin so sliced or scraped or burned that it grew back fast and wrong and killed any growth. The memory that Crona was once a human sat cold in her stomach. She didn’t want to think about all the ways they could have gotten those scars.

She hadn’t noticed herself reaching towards the bird until her fingers grazed their open back. The moment she felt skin beneath her hand, it was immediately torn away and replaced with a trio of gashes across her knuckles. She hissed, yanking her hand back and pressing the still-damp black fabric of her trenchcoat against the skin. Blood bubbled out of the cuts in little red pearls.

Soul had whipped around at the sound of her hiss. “Maka, you alright?”

“Yeah, yeah,” she muttered, rubbing little circles over the wound. Crona stared at her, still shivering with shock, this time staring down at their own claws. Realizations seemed to hit them and they quickly jerked their head to face Maka.

“S-Sorry!” They whimpered, digging their talons into the wood beneath them.

She force a smile, trying to reassure the bird. She couldn’t blame them for scratching her. She shouldn’t have touched them without permission, especially not in such a probably painful area. “It’s fine, you’re fine. It’s my fault, I shouldn’t have touched your scars.”

Their face fell from worry to confusion and they watched her with furrowed eyebrows. “W-what scars?”

“The ones on your back?”

“I don’t-I don’t have any scars on my back?”

Before she could ask anymore, the mizunes arrive and Crona flew towards them, leaving Maka confused and sore, gripping her still bleeding fingers.

===

The shed holding the scarecrows was on the opposite side of the village from where they entered, right on the outskirts of town. It was in the same level of disrepair as the rest of the village, the skeleton of the roof visible where the shingles had been stripped away. At least the inside seemed to be in decent condition.

The walls held well enough to support the scarecrows piled up along the sides of the building and the door didn’t crumble when Soul tried to open it, so already the building was fairing better than many of the others in the village.

“About time we got out of that damn sunlight, I was burning up even inside the lantern!”

Maka frowned as a familiar and irritating voice made itself known through the shed. His presence certainly hadn’t been missed. “Oh, Ragnarok, I forgot you were still around.”

The imp dangled below Crona, who watched him with surprise and what seemed like relief. “Ha! You wish I’d disappeared! I’ve been here the whole time!”

Crona frowned, perching on one of the scarecrows so that Ragnarok could curl beneath them. “Why didn’t you come out earlier, when we called for you?”

The imp shrugged. “I can’t come out in direct sunlight, It’ll burn me.”

Soul’s eyes narrowed. Using his left foot, he kicked a hole through the side of the building, letting in a stream of light. The imp hissed and fell back into the lantern once more. Maka glared at him. “Was that necessary?”

Soul shrugged, shooting a disdainful glance at the lantern, and by extension Crona, who was still looking down in shock. “He kept giving me shit about the sunlight, time I returned the favor.”

===

The last scarecrow was located close to the village. That way, once they were finished, they had a quick trip back to check in, then they could be on their way. It was starting to get dark, the sun’s grin having fallen into a drowsy yawn as it fell closer and closer to the horizon.

Soul had the hay-stuffed form slung haphazardly over his back as they carefully picked their way through the pumpkins. Crona flew behind him, holding up the pant leg to prevent it from dragging and spilling out more straw. This scarecrow was by far the oldest of the set. Its mask was weathered and chipped, as though it had been left out in the sun and dropped a few too many times. The cloth was worn thin and torn in places, with hay poking through and overflowing. It was unlikely to last a day exposed to the elements out in the field. Maka couldn’t understand why they would bother to use such a broken old thing.

The stake stuck out of the ground in front of them as Soul gently slid the stuffed form off his back. Maka helped, easing it off and holding it steady as Soul turned around to give her a hand. Together, they grabbed the scarecrow under its arms and hoisted it onto the wooden rod. It took some jostling to shimmy it down all the way, with Crona hovering a few yards out to give them pointers on which direction to shift it. Once they had gotten it to where there was only an inch left to push, they gave a powerful shove. The scarecrow went down with a foreboding ripping noise. They looked up and saw its arm had fallen off. Lovely.

The torn appendage lay near Maka’s feet, so she knelt down to grab it. When her hands wrapped around the upper part of the arm, the hay inside fell away, revealing something hard and whitish. Maka went pale. It couldn’t be…

She began pulling more and more stuffing out the clothing sleeve. Slowly, she could see more of the yellowed white piece. There were two large knobs, chalky-looking and rough, that tapered into a thin, slightly curved rod.

Soul frowned and leaned over her. “Hey, why are you pulling out all the straw?”

It was a bone. A human bone. Maka screamed, throwing the arm to the ground and crashing backwards into Soul. _There were skeletons in the scarecrows._ They’d been working for a rat cult with skeletons in their scarecrows. How many had they put up? Fifty? Fifty corpses, fifty dead people they carried on their back and shoved onto poles. She felt her heart turn to ice.

They were next. Of course it was too good to be true that the creepy masked rat cult was going to let them off with some manual labor. No, they wanted to work them for all they had, then they’d dispose of them and shove them into more scarecrows. Is that why the town looked so empty? Were the actual citizens inside the scarecrows? _God,_ they were going to die here.

“Maka? Shit, Maka, what happened?” Soul put his hands on her shoulders and leaned over her. His face fell and his eyes widened as he looked down at the arm. “ _Jesus Christ._ ”

Crona flew down, landing on the head of the scarecrow before freezing, eyes wide with terror. They started shaking, eyes fixed on the bone in the scarecrow arm.

Maka didn’t respond, pushing Soul out of the way and yanking open the shirt of the scarecrow. She had to be sure. She pushed away the torn fabric and old straw until she hit something hard. A human ribcage. Her breathing was fast and ragged as she stumbled away from the corpse. They had to get out of here. They couldn’t run for the woods; it was too far and they were so close to the village. Could they hide in the town until nightfall? Would they last that long?

“Oh dear, it seems you’ve broken one of the scarecrows.”

She choked on her breath. Tall, thin boots made little crunching noises against the nets of pumpkins. Maka didn’t dare turn around. The tall woman was right behind her. She paced up to the pair and then past them, kneeling down in front of Maka to pick up the severed arm. She stood close enough that Maka could see the stitching in her skirt. She rose back to her feet, inspecting the arm, dragging her nails up the fabric to the torn edge, then across the exposed bone. She sniffed in disdain. “I suppose it was unavoidable. Was this your last?”

Maka didn’t answer. She’d been too focused on stilling the thundering in her chest. The woman must have taken her silence for affirmation, as she stepped back, giving the pair a quick once over. Maka watched as Soul moved to stand between her and the taller woman. She didn’t seem bothered. “It seems you four have done more than enough, you’re welcome to leave if you wish. Meet us by the entrance to the village and we’ll escort you out.”

Maka shuddered, staring wide eyed at the woman. “What about the scarecrows?” she said, still shaking. “You know we know about the skeletons.”

The woman sighed. “That doesn’t matter. Besides, you aren’t nearly ready to join them.”

And with that, she disappeared back into the fields. Maka and Soul exchanged a look, unsure whether to be relieved after all this. Crona kept their gaze fixed on the bone, once again lying discarded on the ground.

===

The woman and the mizunes had escorted them to the top of the hill, then left them to walk the last few yards alone, back to the woods.

Soul felt a tug at his pant leg and glanced down to see Crona looking up at him, a glint of concern in their eyes as they clutched the fabric with a talon. “Your skin… is- is it okay?” they asked, shifting their eyes away from his. “We were out there a lot longer than we thought we’d be…”

Soul frowned and Maka raised an eyebrow in confusion. Soul hadn’t been complaining about his skin, had he? He couldn’t have been; she would remember that and there’s no way Soul would have been complaining to Crona about something instead of her. “Um, yeah, my skin is doing fine, dude. Why do you ask?” Soul said.

Crona fixed their eyes on the ground and shuffled from foot to foot. “It’s just- you said you burned in the sun real easy and we’ve been out in the sun all day…” Their eyes drooped shamefully. “Sorry to bother you…”

Oh. Both Maka and Soul widened their eyes in surprise. Soul reached a hand back to graze over the exposed skin on the back of his neck. Maka watched as he ran his fingers over the light flesh, his face twisted in amazement. He pulled his hand back and stared at it. “I’m not sunburnt…” He frowned and glanced at the sky, just now pulling into a sunset, still smiling bright. “What the hell?”

Crona whimpered and scrunched up their face. Maka narrowed her eyes. “Let me see.”

“I think I could tell if I was burnt, Maka,” Soul muttered, but didn’t protest as she swung around behind him and yanked down the collar of his shirt, shoving up the mop of white hair that fell on the back of his neck. She inspected the skin, grazing her gloved hand over it. In all their years of friendship, Maka had seen her fair share of sunburns on Soul. When they were younger, he would forget to put on sunscreen before Maka dragged him out on some ridiculous adventure and the pair would come back to the house with Soul sore and red as a cherry. As they got older, Soul got better about protecting himself, but Maka would still be there to help him whenever he missed a patch on his back and couldn’t reach it to apply aloe. His complaining about the sun had become practically white noise to her after so many years of hearing it. She knew what he was like when he was burned. But now, after hours upon hours of slaving away at manual labor directly under the hot sun, his skin was just as pale and healthy as it was when the day started. She found herself echoing his sentiments. “What the heck?”

Soul shrugged. “I guess I just got lucky today.” The statement was meant to quell their worries, but the note of discomfort in his voice told Maka he was just as confused and disconcerted as she was. Maka frowned, but didn’t add anything. There was no point, nobody would be able to find a reasonable explanation anyways. She sighed and took one final look back at the pumpkin fields behind them.

The sun was setting behind the hill that obscured the village. The woman and the Mizunes had left their position at the top of the hill, presumably having grown bored with watching the group slowly walk off. In their place, sitting on its hind legs with its beady eyes fixed on Maka, was the largest rat she’d ever seen. From the distance it was difficult to make out its features, but it sat taller than any of the pumpkins surrounding it, the black and white body stretched to its full height. Its pointed face seemed to hold the same disinterested judgement as the tall woman. Between its long, yellowed teeth, it clutched the discarded scarecrow arm, the bone still hanging out. With a shudder, Maka turned around and followed Soul and Crona back into the woods.


	3. Musical Demon

They’d decided to make camp not long after leaving the field. Soul found a spot with a rather large tree that he found suitable for sleeping near. Crona had liked the spot for it’s undergrowth and Maka had just wanted to rest. Maka could see Crona eyeing the tangled bushes as Soul built the fire.

Had it not been for the canopy of tree branches, they could have watched the stars in such a peaceful moment. But because the sky remained obscured by the tangle of forest, the silence grew thick and awkward. Nobody really wanted to sleep, but the empty atmosphere made sitting too uncomfortable. They couldn’t tell ghost stories; that’s something you do when civilization is close enough to run to should the night get too scary, not when you’re lost in the woods with the actual, genuine threat of a beast. They could sing campfire songs? It was a cheesy idea, but at least it was _something._ Maka hesitated. Would Soul be willing to sing with Crona around? Would Crona sing at all? Ragnarok definitely wouldn’t. In fact, he’d probably let himself out of the lantern while they sang just to screech at them for doing something so campy. Perhaps it wasn’t the best idea.

A gentle thump sounded from the wooden pillar beside her, followed by another and another, until the beats connected into a familiar tune. Soul’s fingers had begun to drum rhythmically against the tree he leaned on. Using music to fill in the silence was nothing new to Soul. On days he spent in an empty house he would create quiet tunes with an instrument or anything he could find and let the melodies populate the house. Sometimes, he would record those songs and let Maka listen to them; other times he would recreate them for her. The habit must have rubbed off on her.

“ _Won’t you play a simple melody? Like my mother sang to me._ ” Soul’s voice was low and smooth from years of classes and training. She’d heard it before; he’d sang for her four times and she’d accidentally walked in on him once, but it was nice to be hearing it again. Fondness curled in her chest at his song choice. The piece was something old he’d shown her back in elementary school. He hadn’t seemed too fond of it at the time, but Maka loved it. It was simple and upbeat, a fantastic song to sing on practically any occasion, much to Soul’s chagrin. As the years went by, it became less and less of a staple in conversation, but it always seemed to make its way onto her playlists. Soul did eventually warm to it, but he never especially liked it. He wouldn’t appreciate it said in front of Crona and especially Ragnarok, but he’d obviously had her in mind picking it. “ _One with good old-fashioned har-mo-ny._ ”

Crona had lifted their gaze from the fire and watched Soul in bafflement. Ragnarok, fortunately, stayed in his cage. Soul’s eyes had drifted closed and he faced the sky as he sang. “ _Play a sim-ple melody_.”

He slumped back against the tree behind him, staring forward. He was expecting her to pick up after him. 

“That’s not really a campfire song, y’know,” she teased, knocking the toe of her boot against his ankle. He flushed and rolled his eyes, drawing the collar of his jacket up to cover his mouth.

“Well, if you’ve got a better idea, I’d love to hear it,” he muttered, digging his nose further into his windbreaker. Maka smiled and pulled herself to her feet. 

“ _Musical demon, set your honey a’ dreamin’, won’t you play me some rag?_ ” Grabbing Soul’s arm, she drew him out in front of her, singing. Her hands slid down and clasped his. Swinging their joint arms, she pulled him into a clumsy dance. Soul may be good when it comes to making music, but he couldn’t dance to save his life. That wasn’t to say Maka was any better, but the only other people there were Crona and Ragnarok, and if Soul was willing to sing in front of them, there’s no reason she couldn’t dance. “ _Just change that classical nag to some sweet beautiful drag~_ ”

Soul smiled, giving Maka a little twirl and letting go as she bounced around the fire. Blair leapt after her and wound herself between Maka’s ankles. Crona was watching intently now, head tilted in confusion. It was almost as if they’d never seen someone dancing before. Maka spun on her heels and faced them, grinning even as they jerked backwards in surprise. “ _If you will play from a copy of a tune that is choppy you’ll get all my applause~_ ”

She bowed as she sang, bending her hips so that her eyes rested level with Crona’s. She reached out a hand to them, which only seemed to elicit another unsure look. When it was obvious they had no intention of taking her hand, she pulled it back and swung into a final twirl. “ _And that is simply because I wanna listen to rag!_ ”

It was exhilarating. A grin stretched across her face as Soul chuckled and began to clap. She turned back towards Crona. Soul moved as well, looking expectantly at the bird. Even Blair stopped her swing to look at them. It was way too much pressure to put on them at once, they shrunk away under all the eyes, legs drawn close to their chest and head bunched down. Soul nodded at them. “Your turn, dude.”

Crona whimpered and shook their head. “I’m not sure I could deal with music.” They sighed, tightening their grip on the lantern. “I don’t even know any songs I could sing.”

“You can just sing one of the parts Maka or I sang,” Soul said with a shrug. “The song repeats.”

Maka gazed at them hopefully as they shuffled from foot to foot. They shot her a nervous glance and she nodded in encouragement. “Give it a try at least?” 

They fixed their eyes back to the ground. “I don’t want to ruin your song…”

“Dude, you’re ruining it by a just sitting here doing nothing. Just sing, no one’s judging you.” Soul said, rolling his eyes. Maka glared at him and opened her mouth to reassure Crona, but before she could say anything, a soft low voice sounded from behind her.

“ _Won’t you play a simple melody?_ ”

Crona’s singing was quiet and melodic, not too far from their speaking voice, but without the wavering breaks and stutters. They were hunched over and hesitant as they sang, as if expecting some kind of punishment. Even still, Maka couldn’t help but grin. Behind her, Soul joined the bird, singing soft and low so his voice didn’t overpower theirs, instead blending into the sound and creating a gentle music. Maka was the last to pitch in, keeping up her enthusiastic bounce, but trying to quiet down just a touch for the others soft voices. She stuck out a hand to Crona once more and this time didn’t pull it away when they flinched backwards. 

Slowly, they stretched a claw out and stepped onto the outstretched palm, lifting their eyes to meet hers with a curious look. They kept singing. Careful not not move too fast and rattle the small creature, Maka lifted them to eye level. Crona themself was light as a feather; lifting them was effortless, at least until the chain hit its end and she had to lift Ragnarok. She almost tipped forward with the weight of the lantern, her voice faltering as she let out a huff of surprise. It was as if the piece was made of lead, or something heavier. Crona had to carry that around all the time? As if Ragnarok couldn’t get any more inconvenient.

Crona must have misinterpreted her surprise at the lantern’s weight for a sound of effort, as they spread their wings and lifted off her palm. She kept her hands under them, guiding the bird to where they’d be level with her face. With a smile, she did a little twirl around them, tapping her foot and closing her eyes as she let the music fill her. When she opened them again, a smile had crept its way onto Crona’s face and they fluttered higher, before mimicking Maka with a little spin through the air. Soul gave a little clap and tapped Maka on the shoulder, hand outstretched in a silent request. She took it and let him twirl her, struggling to not laugh as he dipped her. Above them, Crona hovered, watching curiously, clutching the lantern between their claws. The latch snapped open. Honestly it was a surprise it took this long for him to show up.

“The hell kind of prissy shit is this?!” Leave it to Ragnarok to ruin a song with his screeching. She decided to give Crona’s advice a try. He’d tire himself out before Maka let the nasty demon ruin their song. Above her, Soul’s eye twitched.

Crona had stopped singing, squawking in alarm when Ragnarok decided to come out. They flinched as the imp swung around to look them in the eyes. “Are you seriously gonna join this garbage?! I mean, I expected the cow to be into this kind of pussy crap, but I thought at least sharkboy here was better!”

Maka grit her teeth. Just. Ignore. Him. He grabbed the side of Crona’s face and dragged them close. “Are you just gonna sit here and listen to this shit?!”

Crona watched him, the frown deep and clear on their cracked beak. They looked him over, eyes narrowed, before slowly shaking him off, ignoring his yell of protest, and catching Ragnarok’s round white hands in their talons. A small, shaky smile made its way onto Crona’s face and they picked up singing again. Maka watched in awe and utter amusement as Crona sung, swinging the little imp in a circle with them. Ragnarok screeched, but the bird didn’t seemed to care, lifting him high into the trees, before dipping back down. They froze and shot a cautious look at Maka and Soul.

Maka was grinning the widest she had since they entered the woods. The absolutely delicious combination of Crona’s sudden burst of confidence and Ragnarok’s suffering was damn near _orgasmic_. She wouldn’t have been able to stop it if she wanted to and the bashful look that came over Crona’s face meant that the intensity of her joy certainly wasn’t lost on them. Soul shot them a thumbs up, smile not quite as strong as Maka’s, but certainly enjoying the sight. 

With the approval from both of them, Crona twirled Ragnarok again and all three resumed their singing. Perhaps their music would’ve sounded better without the shrieking demon, but to Maka, the whole thing was perfect.

===

They managed three songs before settling back to sit around the fire. Unfortunately Crona couldn’t pick them up nearly as quickly as Simple Melody, but they tried their best and it seemed like they’d had fun. Ragnarok, of course, hated all of them.

“Are you pussies done yet?” Ragnarok muttered, burying his head further into his tiny arms. He’d settled down from his screeching after Crona had let him go, lying on the log and interjecting whenever he felt inclined to. He stayed outside the lantern though, not quite irritated enough to admit defeat.

“You can go back in the lamp if you’re tired of us, you know…” Crona said, tapping Ragnarok lightly on the top of his head with a claw. Ragnarok swatted them away.

“That lantern isn’t sound-proof and you banshees are so loud it wouldn’t matter if I was in the lantern or out,” he said, rolling his cue-ball eyes.

Maka gave a cheeky grin. “Or maybe Ragnarok just likes spending time with us,” she suggested, shooting a teasing glance at the imp. His head snapped up and he whipped around to glare at her.

“Are you _kidding me?_ If we didn’t need you two to get out of these damn woods, I would’ve made Crona leave you with that rat cult! Being stuck to this spineless loser is bad enough, but being around the two of you is like prying off my fingernails with a rusty butter knife then dying from tetanus! At least Crona doesn’t make me actively want to dig out my eyeballs!”

Crona grinned, and if Maka didn’t know better she would have called the expression almost joking. “Aw, R-Ragnarok, how sweet…” 

Ragnarok gawked back at bird for a moment before rounding on Maka and Soul with a look of tiny, unbridled fury. “LOOK WHAT YOU’VE DONE!!! You’ve already ruined them!” He stretched his arms up and grabbed handfuls of the feathers on the sides of Crona’s face, yanking them back and forth. “Crona?! Crona?! I know you’re in there, you pussy!!! Whatever they’re doing to you, don’t go into the light!!!”

“Ragnarok!” Crona yelped, their voice distorted from being swung back and forth. They tried to catch themself with their wings, but Ragnarok’s jerking had made them too dizzy to properly unfold them. Their pleading fell on deaf ears as the imp continued to yell over them. A look of frustration fell over the bird’s face and in one swift motion, Crona jerked forward, striking Ragnarok in the eye with their beak. He let go, raising his hands up to cover the offending eye as he jerked backwards. “Damnit Crona, you know what it feels like to be pecked by you?! It’s like shoving your eye right in a bag of rusted needles!”

Crona whimpered, reaching out a talon as if to try and help. “Sorry, sorry…”

Ragnarok slapped the claw away. “Don’t give me that pity shit!” he hissed, bringing the hand back up to his eye. Muttering something about Crona, he slowly began to melt back into the lantern, slamming it shut behind him.

Crona looked down at the lantern in worry as Soul snickered. “Nice job, Crona.”

They glanced up at him, the fear visible on their face. “But- what if I actually hurt him?”

Soul shrugged. “He’ll be fine.”

Crona didn’t look calmed, so Maka reached out to give them a gentle pat on the wing. They shuddered and looked over at her. “You didn’t hurt him, he’s just being dramatic.”

Her voice was gentle, unlike Soul’s and while they didn’t seem wholly convinced, they at least appeared to calm down slightly. 

Maka felt a yawn tugging at her lips. The dancing, fun as it had been, had tired them all out. She stretched, lying down on the forest floor. “It’s getting pretty late, huh?”

Soul nodded and Crona gave their little hum of acknowledgement. Maka pulled her coattail around her legs. “I think I’m gonna call it a night, guys.”

“Sounds good to me,” Soul said, shrugging. Crona dipped their head and fluttered off to the spot they’d been eyeing for awhile. It hurt a little that they still wanted to be so far from her and Sou, but only a little bit. After all, it’d only been a day.

===

The fire had died down to a gentle smolder, flickering only a few inches above the ground. Soul reached behind him, grabbing a few of the brittle twigs that littered the ground and tossing them in. The flames devoured them, tendrils of orange light curling over the bark until each had been engulfed. 

He leaned forward, resting his arms against his knees as he watched it burn. The repetitive crackling was calming, but it wasn’t enough to get him to sleep. It couldn’t cover the sound of humming coming from the woods around him. 

He tightened his jacket around his torso and shuddered. Maka was curled beside him, having tired herself out enough that she could actually get some sleep. Most nights, the humming would have been enough to wake her up again. Crona was perched on her other side, only a few feet away. They’d fallen asleep as well. Blair purred at his feet, watching the woods. 

He wasn’t sure whether or not he should wake someone up. The forest was, as far as he knew, empty, and they’d been on the move all day. Crona and Maka were both obviously tired; it wouldn’t be fair of him to wake them up. Still, the noises sent shivers down his spine.

He felt a pressure against his chest and glanced down to see Blair nuzzling him. He sighed, bring up a hand to scratch lightly behind her ears as he turned his eyes back to the fluttering flames. At least he had the cat to keep him distracted.

Somewhere across the fire, high up in the trees, Soul heard a snap, followed by another, until they formed to the rhythm of the humming. His throat went dry and he felt the cat in his lap begin to bristle, lips pulling into a snarl as she glared up into the far off trees. Tightening his grip in Blair’s fur, he dragged his eyes up from the fire to scan the canopy once more.

Directly across from him, in the top-most branches of the tallest tree, only barely illuminated by the fire, sat _something_. He stiffened as the creatures eyes opened and met his. A smile spread across its face, bright white and sharp-toothed and Soul’s jaw clenched at how similar the grin was to his own. It picked up a clawed hand and swept it in a bowing motion. 

“Soul Evans.”


End file.
